Box 8J Mining in openfield/forest landscapes (Czech Republic)

A first phase of intense, deep mining of gold and silver in the Central European region during the thirteenth century was followed by a second boom with copper mining in Slovakia and silver/tin extractions in Bohemia. After the exploitation of these minerals, it was the opening of large coal mines and hundreds of small iron ore mines that gave Bohemia its reputation for being the blacksmith's shop of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Over time, large parts of the country's forests disappeared, shaping a new type of open landscape. The surface mining (depths sometimes exceeding 300 m) and burning of brown coal in northern Bohemia are associated with a number of environmental problems affecting the landscape:

The rehabilitation and recultivation of such areas is a slow process and often not environmentally sound. In some cases, the creation of artificial lakes had at least some positive impacts on the recreational qualities of the affected regions (CAS, 1992; FCE, 1991).